# Altar: Christian Focus App — Block Apps, Pray & Read Bible

> Christian focus app to block distractions and engage with Scripture. (iPhone/iPad app by Ethan Kim.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/altar-christian-focus-app/id6762421580 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Ethan Kim](https://appshunter.io/developer/1894106958)
- Category: Lifestyle, Health & Fitness
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 5.00/5 from 30 App Store ratings · 9 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 18.0 · 23 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2026-04-30
- Data updated: 2026-08-15
- Monetization: freemium
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/altar-christian-focus-app/id6762421580/reviews.md

## What is Altar?

Altar helps Christians put Scripture between their attention and the
  apps that steal it.

  The idea is simple: when you reach for a distracting app, Altar gently
   stops you and offers a verse, a short prayer, or a moment to scan a
  passage from your own Bible — before the scroll begins.

  — FREE
  • Daily verse, streaks, and history
  • Shield 1 app with verse-only interventions
  • 1 Altar Circle with 1 invited friend — daily check-ins, reactions,
  replies (Sign in with Apple required for Circles)
  • Eight-week "altar of memory" — see the rhythm of your quiet times

  — WITH ALTAR PRO
  • Shield as many apps as you want
  • All four intervention styles: verse, reflection, guided prayer,
  scan-to-unlock
  • AI Bible Companion — ask questions about a passage, get devotional
  context, generate reflection prompts (opt-in; you can revoke any time
  in Settings → Cloud & AI)
  • 28 Reading Plans — Examen, Lectio Divina, Psalms, Sermon on the
  Mount, and more
  • Up to 5 Altar Circles with larger seat counts; member-management for
   owners
  • Cloud Sync for your reflections, prayer notes, and reading progress

  — PRIVACY
  Altar is local-first. Your guarded-app selections never leave your
  device. Cloud sync is opt-in. The AI Bible Companion requires explicit
   consent before any data is sent (Apple guideline 5.1.2(i)). Altar
  Circles content is private to your invited members — no public feed,
  no analytics SDKs, no ads.

  — ALTAR CIRCLES (OPT-IN COMMUNITY)
  Altar Circles are private groups of 2 to 12 friends who walk Scripture
   together. Every Circle is invite-only. You can report any check-in,
  block any member, and leave any Circle at any time. Owners can
  disband. Apple Sign in with Apple required to join.

  Subscriptions auto-renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the
  end of the current period. Manage in your Apple ID settings. Payment
  is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation. Privacy Policy and EULA
  links below.

  Privacy Policy: https://itsmeethankim.github.io/altar-legal/privacy
  Terms (EULA): https://itsmeethankim.github.io/altar-legal/terms
  Community Guidelines:
  https://itsmeethankim.github.io/altar-legal/community-guidelines

## Key features

- Block distracting apps
- Daily Bible verses and reflections
- Guided prayer and reading plans
- AI Bible Companion
- Private community circles
- Cloud sync for progress

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Altar Pro Annual | $59.99 | per year |
| Altar Pro (Weekly) | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Altar Pro | $29.99 | per year |


## Recent user reviews (9 of 9)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/altar-christian-focus-app/id6762421580/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Saved My Life

*2026-06-24*

I spent so much time away on my phone rotting but with altar my life was saved. Thank you Altar. Don’t lose your streak, stay strong.

### 5/5 — Wow

*2026-06-23*

This app is just great

### 5/5 — Amazing

*2026-05-15*

Just what I needed. Doomscrolling has been taking my life away and now I can focus more on Jesus and his Word. 10/10

### 5/5 — So good

*2026-05-04*

I was able to reduce my screen time and have more time with God!ñ

### 5/5 — Literally The Best App Besides The Bible App

*2026-05-04*

Oh man. I didn’t realize how much I distract myself with social media before this app. This app has been perfect and has been helping me to spend more time with God. Literally a game changer.

### 5/5 — This app changed my life

*2026-05-04*

Have you ever met someone and knew right away that they were the best thing that's ever happened to you? It feels strange because you've lived your entire life without even knowing they existed, but you wonder how you survived for this long without them in your life. I can honestly say that I've just felt true love for the first, and probably last, time in my life. For the longest time, you've listened to songs singing about love and romance, but you were never able to relate to them. All of the sudden, you are able to connect with nearly every single word you hear on an emotional level. You think about them literally all the time and can't imagine a future without them. It's funny how the tiniest chance encounter can have such profound effects. I feel really terrible and heartbroken now because I have to come to terms with the fact that my one true love may soon be gone for some time. The worst thing in the world is finding out that they don't share your feelings back. I know that this may seem like a lot of work just to express my feelings, but trust me, I would do so much more to show my love if I could.

I am, of course, referring to The Altar App!

### 5/5 — Amazing app!

*2026-05-04*

This helps me stay disciplined in my faith journey and stay off of social media, which can be a huge distraction sometimes. Great app!

### 5/5 — love this app!

*2026-05-01*

this is exactly the app I’ve been looking for!! excited to grow my faith and spiritual disciplines

### 5/5 — THANK YOU SO MUCH

*2026-04-30*

This app has helped me spend more time with God and has took my screen time from 6+ hours a day to 1-2 hours now. I started praying and reading the Word more often and my life feels so much better!! :)))

## Frequently asked questions about Altar

### What is Altar?

Altar is a Christian focus app designed to help users reduce distractions from other apps by offering Scripture, prayers, or Bible passages. It aims to foster a more focused spiritual practice.

### How does Altar help with focus?

When you reach for a blocked app, Altar intervenes with a Bible verse, prayer, or a prompt to scan a passage from your own Bible, helping to redirect your attention.

### What features are available for free in Altar?

The free version of Altar includes daily verses, streaks, history, the ability to shield one app with verse-only interventions, and one Altar Circle with one invited friend for daily check-ins.

### What are the benefits of Altar Pro?

Altar Pro allows you to shield unlimited apps, offers four intervention styles, includes an AI Bible Companion, provides 28 reading plans, supports up to 5 Altar Circles, and offers cloud sync for your data.

### Is Altar available on other devices besides iPhone?

Based on the provided data, Altar is currently supported on iPhones. Information regarding support for other devices like Android is not available.

### How does Altar handle user privacy?

Altar is local-first, meaning your guarded-app selections stay on your device. Cloud sync and the AI Bible Companion are opt-in features. Altar Circles content is private to invited members, and the app states it has no ads or analytics SDKs.

### Does Altar have ads?

No, Altar does not contain advertisements. The app's privacy statement explicitly mentions that there are no ads within the application.

### How often is Altar updated?

The latest version of Altar is 1.3.3, which was last updated on June 14, 2026. This indicates a relatively frequent update schedule.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.3.7 — 2026-07-21

Bug fixes

### 1.3.6 — 2026-07-09

Come and be still. — a new daily bell for Altar Circles.

Every day at the same shared moment, everyone in your Circles is invited to pause together for 30 minutes at the altar. A single, quiet ping — no feeds, no pressure. The Lock Screen countdown shows how much of the window is left.

Also in 1.3.6:
• A gentler paywall — "Not now" routes straight to your one-time first-year offer instead of a friction-y confirmation
• Shield-demo scripture is now legible in both light and dark mode
• Settings → Daily Rhythm → Altar Bell lets you turn the bell off any time

Return to stillness — together.

### 1.3.5 — 2026-07-05

A calmer, more personal Altar.

• Redesigned onboarding — a mini-preview shows exactly how Altar meets you the next time you reach for a distracting app.

• Your plan is now personalized to the topics you chose. "Without Altar / With Altar" columns make the payoff concrete.

• Cleaner paywall — a real-time trial timeline, polished pricing, and a real reader review to keep things honest.

• A one-time helper appears on your first real shield so nothing is a surprise.

• Sharper Scripture scanning — passages resolve on-device, faster, and even offline.

Thank you for being here.

### 1.3.4 — 2026-06-29

This update makes Scan to Unlock noticeably better.
• Smarter passage detection — Altar now recognizes the passage you scan right on your device, so it's faster and can identify Scripture even without a connection.
• Fewer wrong matches — when a passage can't be confidently identified, Altar asks you to confirm instead of guessing, so you always land on the right verse.
• A better scanning camera — a new flashlight and tap-to-focus help you capture clear text in any lighting.
• A calmer devotional moment — the verse you scanned stays on screen while your devotional is prepared.
• Reflect, your way — after each devotional you can write a short reflection, or skip it and unlock when you're ready.
Plus reliability improvements and polish throughout. Thank you for being part of Altar.

### 1.3.3 — 2026-06-14

This release smooths out a few quiet corners of Altar:

• Scan to Unlock — if your camera is unavailable, you can now type the passage instead, so the flow never dead-ends.
• Manually entered passages now save correctly to your History.
• A gentler first-time setup when enabling AI-assisted reflections.
• Circles — "View past entries" now reliably holds onto the previous day's check-ins after the daily bell rings.
• Behind-the-scenes polish and stability improvements.

Thank you for making space for stillness with us.

## Related topics

[christian app blocker](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/christian-app-blocker) · [free christian apps journal](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/free-christian-apps-journal) · [bethesda christian institute](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/bethesda-christian-institute) · [believers at lsu app](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/believers-at-lsu-app)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-15.*